This application claims the priority of Swiss application 1652/97, filed in Switzerland on Jul. 7, 1997, and International Application PCT/CH98/00295 filed on Jul. 6, 1998, the disclosures of which are expressly incorporated by reference herein.
The present invention relates to a set of structural elements for furniture which contains connection elements, supporting profiles and covers.
Furniture systems are known which permit the construction of, for example, shelves of corner joints, supporting profiles and cover plates. For example, rods with round cross-sections and of different lengths are used as supporting profiles which can be used to build cubical shapes and which are connected with one another on the corners in each case by means of corner joints which have threaded rods as connection elements. A basic frame constructed in this manner is then equipped with cover plates which are used as plates, coverings, housing parts or doors. By means of a few basic elements, these structural elements permit the production of multiple pieces of furniture, particularly shelves, of different sizes which can be adapted to the individual requirements.
However, because of the construction with closed profiles, restrictions exist with respect to the further development of the cover elements, particularly of the door elements. Thus, hinged doors and folding doors can be implemented only by the installation of special fittings. These fittings, which are mounted in the useful range of the corresponding shelve space, restrict the freely usable space. It is also difficult for a layperson to handle the basic building of such shelves because the corner connections are very complex and special tools are required for establishing reliable connections.
It is an object of the present invention to find structural elements for furniture in order to create furniture which can be assembled and disassembled in a simple manner, such as shelves, and which can also be equipped with cover elements in a simple manner.
According to the invention, this object is achieved by means of structural elements wherein the supporting profiles are straight rod-type hollow profiles which have a rectangular cross-section, wherein corner connections are L-shaped angular fittings which can be inserted into the supporting profiles and which have an essentially rectangular cross-section and have indentations which extend on at least two opposite sides respectively transversely to the insertion direction and are arranged in parallel to one another and can be connected in the corner area perpendicularly to the insertion direction with rectangular studs which also have a rectangular cross-section and indentations which extend on at least two opposite sides respectively transversely to the insertion direction and are arranged in parallel to one another and can also be inserted into the supporting profiles.
Further advantageous features of the invention are described herein and in the claims.
The combination of supporting profiles having a rectangular cross-section with the L-shaped corner connections permits the simple production of frame elements which are dimensionally stable. Starting on the corners, additional supporting profiles can be mounted on these frame elements by means of the assembling studs, which are used as vertical posts of the pieces of furniture or shelves. As the result of the simple construction of the elements, the assembly can also be carried out by untrained persons without any special tools. Conventional screwed connections can advantageously be used.
Particularly for the horizontal boards, frame profiles further developed according to the invention are preferably provided, into which flat cover plates can advantageously be inserted as sliding elements. For this purpose, the preferably further developed special profiles are provided which have an H-shaped cross-section and which are longitudinally displaceably arranged in the frame profiles and receive the cover plates. As the result of the preferred shaping of the profiles according to the invention, boards of virtually any thickness having a single profile shape can be used. This, in particular, permits the selection of different materials for the coverings, such as wood, plastic, glass, and the like, and particularly also the change of these materials and thus of the wall thicknesses of the assembled pieces of furniture. As the result of the arrangement as a double groove, adjacent boards can be displaced with respect to one another unhindered. This arrangement also has the advantage that no space is required for a door mounting or the like, whereby the useful space is not impaired by the covering.
Other objects, advantages and novel features of the present invention will become apparent from the following detailed description of the invention when considered in conjunction with the accompanying drawings.